In NA, FFXI released one year after it did in JP
I have given this a lot of thought while even in alpha. FFXI was released approximately one year in NA after it was released in JP. I have no idea what the launch was like on the PS2 in JP, I am sure it wasn't as bad as what we got in FFXIV. What I want to say is maybe FFXIV isn't too far off from what FFXI was one year later. In the next few months we will have jobs, stable severs (though still laggy), chocobos, airships, dungeons, and a market system you can get some gear and items from. I am not saying any of these features are solid, but they aren't totally broken either (except the server lag). I know FFXI came out on PC back in 2003 for NA and maybe the new experience of playing an MMO in the context of FF, plus the 8 years of development have created unrealistic expectations for FFXIV. Now that we have reached the one year mark and new leadership has taken over with less than a year's influence. I think we should start to really judge the game in January of 2012, the anniversary of Yoshida san taking direction for FFXIV. What I think we will find is a different game than FFXI and a decent game for us to play and enjoy.
PS: SE please dont release the PS3 version till 3 months after FFXIII-2 in NA...just saying.